Sometimes I'm an idiot. I had this idea in my head a few years ago of what Father John Misty sounded like, based on some passing reference to his time in Fleet Foxes. So I ignored his music for far too long. I was wrong in my assumption, of course. So when I finally heard "Nancy From Now On" somewhere eventually and loved it, I was ready to listen to more from the artist sometimes known as Josh Tillman. And just when I was about to dive excitedly into his back-catalog, Sub Pop announced a greatest hits.
The set is called Greatish Hits: I Followed My Dreams and My Dreams Said to Crawl, and it celebrates the musician's best material from the last decade or so. Expertly paced, the comp has been something I've been listening to at least a few times a week for the last few months. I'm glad it's finally out this week.
"Please Don't Die" and the superbly catchy "Disappointing Diamonds are the Rarest of Them All" are two representations here from God's Favorite Customer (2018), though there's another. And those cuts offer up what I like most about Tillman's approach at melding influences as disparate as Nilsson, Leonard Cohen, and Neil Young. There's a lot going on here, and in other hands, these would be lugubrious laments, but Tillman routinely places a premium on melody and arrangement so that helps keep things out of the self-indulgent zone. Similarly, the Glen Campbell-ish "Goodbye Mr. Blue", from 2022's Chloë and the Next 20th Century and the twang-y "I'm Writing a Novel", from 2012's Fear Fun illustate Tillman's affinity for incorporating country influences in his brand of alt-pop. Still, all of these tunes are big, big enough that none of them sacrifice a sweeping hook for fake authenticity.
The Randy Newman-ish "Pure Comedy" from the 2017 album of the same name serves up another flavor of Father John Misty's talents, with the clever-but-not-overdone "Things It Would Have Been Helpful to Know Before the Revolution" from the same record taking that skewed perspective even further, with the song sort of aspiring to the same heights of satire and obversation as Sail Away-era Randy. "Total Entertainment Forever", from that same Pure Comedy record, is more distinctive in its approach. On this one, Father John Misty earns comparisons to Jon Brion and Rufus Wainwright, even as his lyrical concerns are unique to his own hopeful-yet-jaundiced view of life and the universe. I keep going back to a line from "Pure Comedy" which seems to encapsulate Josh's view:
"I hate to say it, but each other's all we've got."
Father John Misty could be accused of being a bit ambitious, writing songs about the fate of humanity and all, but ambition is good. Such an approach is better than a bunch of slackers using ironic detachment and feedback to signify meaning. At least Father John Misty can produce material that's borderline elegant, sometimes too heart-on-the-sleeve, but always hummable. Even epic-length new song "I Guess Time Just Makes Fools of Us All" doesn't ovestay its welcome, despite the disco affectations being a little much.
I'm glad Greatish Hits: I Followed My Dreams and My Dreams Said to Crawl by Father John Misty exists. Like I said, I barely knew any of his material and was circling around it online and then this comp showed up to give me a crash course. As a single overview of his work, this does the trick. Not only that, it's maybe the most relistenable release of 2024 so far, in my opinion.
Greatish Hits: I Followed My Dreams and My Dreams Said to Crawl by Father John Misty is released on Sub Pop this week.
[Photo: Bradley J. Calder]